Substantiation combined of applying brooders and heated floor in pig-breeding

Abstract

The objective of the research is to study the effect of microclimate parameters in the brooders installed in the rest area of piglets on the growth and safety indices of young animals, reproductive characteristics of sows. The object of research is nursing sows with newborn piglets, divided in three groups of 12 heads each. The piglets of the 1st control group were kept on heated floor during the nursing period of 28 days. The cylindrical brooders, bounded with a cone from above in the 2nd group, with a truncated cone fitted with a valve in the 3rd group were installed in the rest area of the experimental groups of suckling piglets. The heated floor was the means of heating during the first two weeks of life of young animals in the experimental groups. It was established that the optimal microclimate parameters were created in the brooders of the 2nd experimental group during the first two weeks of the nursing period. By the time of weaning the air temperature increased to 30.6 °C in the closed airspace of the brooders, the concentration of ammonia - to 9.3 mg/m3, the air velocity was 0.04 m/s in this group, which contributed to an increase in the live weight of piglets only by 7.4 % (p<0.05), the weight of nest the sow - by 10.2 % (P<0.01), in comparison with the control group. More optimal parameters of the microclimate during the entire nursing period due to the valves allowing to adjust the width of the holes on top of the truncated cones of brooders of the 3rd experimental group, contributed to an increase in the live weight of pigs by 8.9 % (p<0.01), their safety - by 3.5 %, the weight of nest the sow - by 12.8 % (P<0.001) by time of weaning in comparison with the control.